I've been using Electro-Harmonix effects for too long to mention, and I know two things to be true: the pedals are built to last, and their tones never go out of style. All of which makes these Musicians Friend Black Friday deals all the more reason to celebrate. From Big Muffs to multieffects to a half-price Pulsar Stereo Tremolo and Satisfaction Plus Fuzz — there are loads of great deals to be had on these and other Electro-Harmonix pedals this Black Friday.

Personally, I love the Big Muff tone, and the variety of Big Muff pedals on tap here is remarkable. If you want to try it in your arsenal, I'd suggest starting with the classic Big Muff Pi. For a more-cutting vintage tone, the Op-Amp Big Muff Pi Fuzz should do nicely, but if you want lush distortion of the original with greater articulation, but all means go for the J Mascis Ram's Head Big Muff Pi Distortion/Sustainer. You get all the true Big Muff tone without losing the nuance of your playing style.

I also have to vouch for the XO Stereo Pulsar Tremolo Guitar Effects Pedal. I'm a big fan of modulation effects, and the Stereo Pulsar has everything you could want. The ability to not only choose between triangle and square but also shift to various shapes between them is truly awesome. If you love tremoloand want maximum control over the effect, it's the way to go.

Musician's Friend's Electro-Harmonix Black Friday deals seem to grow with each hour, so be sure to check back here or at the Musician's Friend's EXH page.

And of course check out more early offers on our dedicated Black Friday guitar deals page.

Any guitarist on a mission to build a pedalboard should make getting hold of one of the best delay pedals among their first tasks. The delay pedal is a super versatile effect that changes your sound unlike pretty much anything else, and best of all, it inspires creativity.

Just about all of your favorite artists will have experimented with delay, and for some it becomes as intrinsic a part of their sound as the guitar or distortion they use, such is the power of delay!

Delay as an effect has been around for a long time and some of the very first analog delay effects pedals remain among the best, while other, newer digital delays are pushing the boundaries of warping time. Regardless of what you are looking for in a delay pedal, from simple slap-back to stacked stereo delays, there will be something tailor-made for you, and you might just find it on our list.

If you’re brand new to delay pedals, scroll to the FAQs section to find out about how they work and why they might be great for your pedalboard.

Guitar Player recommends

For us, it doesn’t get much better than the Line 6 DL4 MkII. A legendary delay pedal given a modern reboot, it’s not only got fantastic delay sounds but also houses reverb and a looper, making it one of the most complete time-based effects pedals around.

If you want what the pros are using, then it’s all about the ubiquitous Strymon TimeLine. Packed with 12 different delay sounds, 200 presets, and a built-in looper, it’s the delay pedal of choice for many a touring guitar player.

For those who are looking to be a bit more budget or space conscious, the Boss DD-8 gives you lots of sounds with a compact form factor. With Boss’ trademark clean, noise-free operation and a wealth of sounds that go from analog to shimmer, you get a lot of bang for your buck with this one.

Best overall

The Line 6 DL4 MkII is a reboot of a now legendary digital delay pedal that’s been heard on countless recordings since its inception in 1999. Lovingly known as the ‘green monster’, this new version packs even more sounds and features into a unit that is slightly smaller than the original.

If you’re after classic analog delay sounds then the ones here are pretty much indistinguishable from the classic pedals and machines they’re based upon. All of the classic DL4 tones are available, as well as a host of more modern effects sounds which make it probably the most complete digital delay on the market.

Add in the bonus reverb sounds and you’ve got an incredibly complete soundstage to pick from, making it a proper Swiss army knife for time-based tones. The looper is as usable as ever, with an increased looping time and the intuitive functionality that made it a sleeper hit in the early noughties.

Read the full Line 6 DL4 MkII review 

Best multi-mode

Present on more pro ‘boards than we care to remember, the Strymon TimeLine delay pedal is about as close as it comes to industry standard these days. Packed full of sounds and ways to tweak them, it’s the dream delay pedal for players who like to painstakingly craft their tones.

There are 12 main tones on offer here, ranging from tape and bucket brigade-type delays right through to lo-fi and filtered sounds. They’re all eminently tweakable as well, with the Filter and Grit controls allowing you to dirty up the tones, or you can add modulated sounds to your tails. You can pitch-shift your repeats and even get multi-head tape and rhythmic multi-tap sounds.

It’s not just the sounds that are great. Thanks to the myriad of connectivity options there are loads of ways to integrate into your existing rig and further manipulate the sounds, which is partly why it’s so popular on pro pedalboards. Add an expression pedal to control parameters in real-time, run other pedals in the built-in feedback loop, and use MIDI control for easier preset selection; it really can do it all.

Best digital delay

Boss’ original delay pedal, the DD-3 has been around for a long time now, so it was about time it got an upgrade. Enter the Boss DD-8, which does everything one of the best compact delay pedals ever made does, and loads more.

Despite the name, there are actually 11 different modes in the DD-8 if you count the looper. All the classic delay sounds like tape, analog and digital are here, as well as lots more esoteric tones like shimmer, modulated, and even a delay-plus-reverb option. 

With an additional footswitch, you can also unlock extra functionality from certain sounds, making the pedal even more sonically flexible. Add in stereo operation for some seriously wide sounds and the option for multiple footswitches, or one expression pedal, and you’ve got a lot of delay pedal for comparatively little cost.

Best on a budget

If you want a simple delay pedal without the bells and whistles, or you’re just a bit short of cash, the Fender Hammertone Delay pedal is one of the better options out there for cheap delay stompboxes.

There’s loads of flexibility thanks to the useful pattern control, which gives you various multi-head tape sounds. There’s a quarter-note delay and two rhythmic patterns that are pre-programmed, giving you that classic Space Echo and Echorec-type sound without having to splash the cash.

The modulation control can be augmented by dipswitches inside the pedal, and overall there’s a really nice feel to the way the delay tails degrade as they repeat. It’ll do that infinite oscillation style trick as well as act as a nice slapback, making it super versatile if tape delay sounds are your bag.

Read the full Fender Hammertone Space Delay review 

Best with modulation

Where a majority of delay pedals are now digital, the MXR Carbon Copy is an outlier in that it’s a genuine analog delay. This means it sounds quite unlike the majority of the other pedals on this list, with a distinctive tone that’s all its own.

There’s a dark warmth to this delay pedal that’s the antithesis of some of the cleaner delay sounds on others. The extended delay time of up to 600ms is more than a lot of other pedals, meaning it can do spacey and ambient just as well as it does vintage slapback.

Internal trim pots control the width and speed of the modulation although they’re a bit of a pain to access as you have to remove four screws to get to them. This is the same if you’re using battery power too so we’d recommend a pedalboard power supply for one of these. Despite that singular shortfall, its delay character sets it apart from many others on this list, with a sound that will keep you coming back. 

Best Memory Man-style

With the original being introduced in 1978, the Electro-Harmonix Nano Deluxe Memory Man gives you all the vibe of the original without having to sacrifice so much of your pedalboard real estate. 

The sound is lovely and clear despite the analog design and the feedback control does everything from slapback to long ambient delay. It does that bucket-brigade sound really well, but it’s when you start playing with the modulation sounds that things get really interesting. 

You can dial in a chorus or rotary-type effect to your delay tails, making for some incredibly expansive sounds. The unusual level knob doesn’t actually control the output, but instead adjusts the input, meaning the pedal can add some drive and boost to your overall tone.

Read the full Electro-Harmonix Nano Deluxe Memory Man review 

Best modular delay

If you’ve tried every delay out there and still yearn for more, the Meris LVX Modular Delay System will offer enough depth to please even the most adventurous tone seeker. Packed full of features and functionality, the LVX is less delay pedal and more an instrument in its own right.

The Meris LVX will function as a simple delay pedal if you want it to, but it will also help you create otherworldly soundscapes that shift and undulate beneath your guitar tone. Create unruly rhythmic patterns, step sequencer-type pitch-shifting delays, synth pads, infinite reverb tails, and bass-heavy rumbles that will evoke horror and sci-fi soundtracks.

It sounds complex, yet it’s all easily manipulated via an intuitive menu system accessed from a few knob presses and turns to adjust your chosen parameter. This display makes it clear what’s contained within your sound and how it’s being manipulated, making for an incredibly immersive experience. Ideal for adventurous and progressive guitar players.

Best bucket brigade

Already being hailed as one of the finest analog delay pedals ever made, the Boss DM-101 Delay Machine takes the best of true analog sound and marries it with the convenience and usability of digital.

Housing 12 bucket brigade delays, you get a huge range of sounds from the classic analog warmth of the original BBD, to tape-style delays infused with BBD character, to a clean modern sound with a defined high end. There are loads of great stereo sounds and plenty of options to shape the modulation cycles.

Many of the presets feature the ability to choose your waveform, as well as manipulate just how the modulation is applied with the Mod Rate, Mod Depth and Variation controls. Store up to 127 presets and utilize extra functionality with external footswitches or expression pedals. It’s a perfect marriage of analog and digital for the modern guitar player.

Best retro delay

Aiming to recreate the classic tones of the Binson Echorec, the Strymon Volante is a comprehensive tape and drum echo machine that sounds absolutely incredible. It’s got a lot of depth, but take the time to master it and you can dial in some spectacular vintage tones.

There are three different echo types but all are very distinct, and when you take into account the number of parameters available to tweak, you can get an incredible amount of sounds out of it. Dial in Gilmour or Hank Marvin-esque echo tones, release your inner Sun Studios slapback, or dial in Space Echo style sounds – chances are if there’s a vintage echo tone you love, the Volante can handle it.

A powerful part of the Volante is the individual playback heads that can be activated or deactivated individually. They can operate at full or half volume and can even be sent to independent sides when using the pedal in stereo. Add in a wealth of other controls, the ability to use a footswitch and MIDI control and you’ve got one of the most comprehensive vintage echo pedals ever made.

Best with tape

Tape delay is often considered the Holy Grail of delay effects, and whilst many pedals attempt to recreate tape delay, none quite nail it… apart from the T-Rex Replicator D’Luxe Tape Echo. A genuine tape delay, shrunk into pedal format… although the word ‘shrunk’ should be used fairly loosely as it is still large compared to most effects pedals.

Equipped with a slot to add tape cartridges that look similar to cassettes, the Replicator D’Luxe records your signal directly onto the tape and then plays it back in one of three settings: short head, long head and a mix of the two. Each setting has its own unique character but all are unmistakably the sound of classic, beautiful tape delay.

As it is a genuine tape delay, you do need to purchase the tape cartridges separately and will need to replace them eventually (though as they wear, you will get the chorus effect that worn tape produces, which many love!) which means there are additional running costs over the lifetime of owning this unit. The other potential ‘running cost’ could come from repairs, as this is far more delicate than most other typical delay pedals. 

The Replicator D’Luxe won’t be for the majority, but for delay die-hards, this is one delay you have to consider adding to your collection, because no other delay pedal – particularly tape delay pedal – comes close.

FAQs

How we choose the best delay pedals

At Guitar Player, our team of experienced musicians have thoroughly explored the world of delay pedals, rigorously testing various models in real-world scenarios to provide you with practical and reliable reviews and recommendations.

Our handpicked selection of the best delay pedals showcases exceptional sonic qualities, intuitive controls, and reliable performance. We meticulously evaluate factors such as delay types, sound quality, versatility, build quality, and user-friendliness, ensuring that these pedals stand out among the competition.

With Guitar Player as your trusted resource, delve into our recommended delay pedals, all thoroughly vetted by fellow musicians. Discover the options that will elevate your sound, add depth to your playing, and ignite your creativity. Whether you seek classic analog warmth or modern digital precision, let Guitar Player guide you in finding the perfect delay pedal to enhance your musical journey.

Read more on how we test and review products.

Related buyer's guides

• Connect your pedals with the best patch cables
• On a budget? Here's our list of the best electrics under $1,000
• Plug in with one of the best guitar cables
• Get the best of both worlds with the best acoustic electric guitars
• Want an affordable amp? Well, here are the best guitar amps under $1,000

Electro-Harmonix has joined forces with Police electric guitar legend Andy Summers to create a new flanger pedal, appropriately named Walking on the Moon.

It's a fairly straightforward unit that – in both sound and looks – harkens back to the glory days of the Police, and their domination of the pop charts. You can hear the stompbox in action below.

At the heart of the Walking on the Moon pedal lies a trio of control knobs – Color, Range, and Rate. Rate, as you might imagine, sets the speed of the modulation (from "slow, smooth filter sweeps to jittering vibrato," EHX says), while Range adjusts the lower limit of the flanger sweep.

The Color control, meanwhile, adjusts the intensity of the flanger effect – from “subtle chorusing effects to classic jet woosh sounds.“

Another feature of note is the pedal's Filter Matrix mini-toggle, which removes the LFO from the circuit, thereby creating more of a fixed filter effect. The pedal also boasts dual (Dry and Flanged) outputs.

“This beautiful shimmering – which sort of made the sound bigger and more glamorous – became a sort of characteristic of my guitar sound," Summers said of the pedal in a press release. "A big part of my guitar sound at that time in The Police was the flange sound, which we have here today in this great new pedal.”

The Electro-Harmonix Andy Summers signature Walking on the Moon flanger includes true bypass switching, and a 9V adapter, and is available now for $129.  

For more info on the pedal, visit ehx.com.

The result of an unusual coalition between Electro-Harmonix, JHS pedals founder Josh Scott and graphic artist Daniel Danger, the Lizard Queen Octave/Distortion is a compact version of JHS’s “big box” pedal of the same name.

Created in the spirit of a “love letter” to Mike Matthews (who founded EHX in 1968), and made to echo the style of pedals that EHX produced in the mid 1970s, the limited-edition run features period-correct sheet-metal housings with silk-screened graphics, N.O.S. transistors and old-school circuit-board construction, complete with hand-drawn traces rendered artistically by Danger himself. (For the full story about the LQ, visit jhspedals.info)

The nano Lizard Queen has the same graphics and complement of volume, octave and balance controls, but adds modern conveniences like a jack for external power and an on/off LED, as found on the JHS version.

Removing the bottom plate from the die-cast enclosure provides access to the already installed “super-heavy-duty” carbon battery sporting Mike Matthews’ image, and allows you to see all of the circuit components instead of just the back side of the PCB, as is often the case.

Scott maintains that the Lizard Queen is not a clone of a Roger Mayer Octavia, Foxx Tone Machine or, for that matter, any other vintage or modern octave-fuzz.

The pedal is particularly interesting because it’s a fixed-gain fuzz that dispenses with a standard gain knob in favor of a balance control that operates with a sort of dual personality. As Scott says, it’s “not a tone control, but it affects the tone; and not a gain control, but it affects the gain.”

The distortion sounds thickest and heaviest with the balance control turned counter-clockwise to the Shadow position. It’s more biting and gated sounding when turned clockwise to the Sun position, particularly when the highly interactive octave control is also halfway up or so.

Having a dedicated octave control is also somewhat unusual (although EHX’s Octavix also has one), and it’s a cool feature because you can turn the octave almost completely off or progressively add it to get the desired amount of shrill, ring-modulation-infused sound.

The pedal has a lot of output too, so plenty of boost is available, if needed. Played through a Fender Deluxe Reverb combo with a variety of single-coil and humbucker guitars from Fender, Gibson and PRS, the Lizard Queen was easy to dial in for tones that can be very reminiscent of the previously mentioned classic octave-fuzzes – or for that matter non-octave pedals like the Big Muff or Fuzz Face – while also having plenty of latitude to conjure sounds that are just fun and pleasing to hear.

For instance, turning the octave knob all the way up with the balance control set to Shadow elicits gated, modulating swells that sound like a backward effect. Turn the knobs the other direction and the tones become smooth and vocally in a “woman tone” sort of way with the guitar turned up (especially when using a neck-position humbucker), before descending into spittiness with a halo of octave chime as you turn down.

Neat stuff.

The Lizard Queen is such a blast to play, and for the admission price of $99 you’re essentially getting a boutique pedal for a pittance when compared to the original JHS offering, which is a piece of sonic art in its own right.

Bottom line: If you’re looking to summon your inner Jimi Hendrix or just want the most flexible octave-fuzz available to add fresh color to your distortion tones, the Lizard Queen is the bomb, and it gets an Editors’ Pick Award.

Specifications

• CONTROLS: Volume, octave, Balance
• I/O: Input, output, 9VDC center-negative, power jack (adapter not included)
• FOOT SWITCH: Mechanical, true-bypass
• EXTRAS: 9V battery installed
• SIZE: 4.25” x 2.25” x 1.25”

Visit Electro-Harmonix for more information.

As founder of Electro-Harmonix, Mike Matthews certainly deserves his 2012 Guitar Player Hall of Fame Award for Manufacturing Legend. But the man is also a force of nature.

He’s someone I’d bet would laugh during a zombie apocalypse with unlit cigar in hand and a master plan for continued existence in tow – well, as long as the fish were still biting.

His company has survived union thugs, bankruptcy, strong-arm tactics in its Russian tube factory, and well over five decades of competing in the roller-coaster-in-flames wild ride of the electric guitar industry.

“Effecting music since 1968,” EHX continues to develop a balanced mix of inventive and traditional products

Matthews is also one of the last icons of the spontaneous, innovative, and well-educated hippie entrepreneurial clan that challenged and changed the music industry – even if that spirit caused a few problems here and there.

“Back in the ’70s, I stupidly smoked too much pot, drank too much liquor, and I jumped on every good idea I had,” explains Matthews. “Eventually, I had too many problems at once, so Electro-Harmonix collapsed in the early ’80s.

“That was painful. But I got the business back, and when I did, I was more conservative. I waited patiently until it was really the best time to produce a product. Because of that, we’re now financially strong, and we can move on anything that’s hot. Patience is important.”

My very first guitar effect was an LPB-1.

I jumped on that in 1968 – and we still sell tons of them. I wanted to develop a guitar sustainer so people could sound like Hendrix, and the LPB-1 was a small box that was plugged into the sustainer prototype.

I recognized that box was a great and simple product that was needed, and it ushered in the age of overdrive.

In those days, you could turn up an amp to 10, and it still had enough headroom where it wouldn’t distort. But with an LPB-1 hitting the amp, you got much added power, and then the overdrive.

You guys have been around since 1968, yet you still put out cool pedals as if you’re some weird boutique company working in a garage. How do you make that happen?

We listen to people, we have a bunch of guitarists in the company, we have great designers, and we’re quick. We’ll only get involved with a design project we can bring to the market in less than one year.

Also, we always have a mix of products under development – complex digital products, simple digital products, and a variety of analog products.

Thanks for the compliment about being like a boutique company, but our pricing is mass market – as if we were a company manufacturing in Vietnam.

There’s a tsunami of pedals in the market these days. How do you strategize if a planned product is relevant, new and exciting, and/or competitive?

I’ve been doing this for a while. The more you do it, the more you learn, and I’ve been fortunate at being good at picking winners. Not everything is a winner, but we have a real high percentage of them.

It’s business. You’ve got to compete, and we like to win. But you can’t win without really good products. In the old days, I would decide on every single feature of every product. Today, we have some great designers, so all I do is pick the products we’re going to spend the R&D investment on.

But I still come down hard on sticking to the features we initially identify. I don’t like it when engineers change their minds and add additional features during the development process. That can screw things up – especially with digital, where you could wreck the whole software structure.

Once we decide, we stick with it. If there are some great new ideas along the way, I leave those for a future design. You’ve got to shit and get off the pot, and bring out the product. To survive, you have to ship more products. We have about 10 percent of the world market, so there’s room for us to grow.

So what’s life like now, after so many years of running your company?

The first thing with me is Electro-Harmonix, the second thing is fishing, and the third thing is the ladies. During the week, I’m at the factory 24 hours a day, and I dig it. I have my Jacuzzi and my Direct TV, and, on weekends, I head out to Montauk and go fishing if the weather is decent.

If you want to be successful, you have to love what you do, because you’re going to be competing with other people who love what they do, as well.

Visit Electro-Harmonix here.

Back in January 2021, stompbox buff and JHS Pedals founder Josh Scott appeared on his popular YouTube series The JHS Show extolling the virtues of Electro-Harmonix’s long-discontinued Slap-Back Echo.

Unlike many of EHX’s colorful product names, the original Slap-Back Echo does exactly what it says on the tin, introducing a classic rockabilly-style slap-back sound that can be controlled using a single blend knob and filter on/off switch.

Lauded by Scott as “perfect,” the JHS head honcho begged EHX to reissue this rare '70s stompbox. Now, the New York pedal firm has responded with the release of the Slap-Back Echo analog delay reissue.

Touted by EHX as a “1978 rarity reissued with modern updates” and the “most pedalboard-friendly chassis yet,” the new Slap-Back Echo is currently available priced $81.

Slap-back echo is one of the earliest electric guitar effects. Famously used during the dawn of rock and roll by legends Chet Atkins and Scotty Moore, this short tape delay sound helped define the voice of rockabilly guitar.

A couple of decades later, bucket-brigade (BBD) analog circuitry was widely implemented into stompbox design, proving a useful alternative to tape while greatly expanding the possibilities of time-based effects.

Some of the better-known ‘70s EHX BBD chip designs include the Deluxe Memory Man delay, Small Clone chorus and Electric Mistress flanger. Although these classic pedals have been reissued in multiples, the under-the-radar Slap-Back Echo has only just been revisited.

Appearing with newly expanded controls and a significantly smaller footprint, the Slap-Back Echo reissue boasts three switchable delay time settings – namely, 45ms, 65ms and 100ms – while the blend knob travels from 100 per cent dry to 100 per cent wet.

A second knob controls gain, allowing a dry-signal boost of up to 20dB (handy for slap-back-drenched solos and lead riffs.)

Here’s a quick rundown of useful info:

• All-analog circuit features true-bypass
• Independent gain and blend knobs
• Time switch features 45ms, 65ms, and 100ms delay times
• Up to 20dB of boost
• Small chassis (3.65 x 2.0 x 2.0 inches)
• 9.6VDC-200mA power adapter included

Visit the EHX website for more information.

Longtime Andy Timmons fans surely remember an era when the Texas guitar hero gigged with two vintage Electro-Harmonix Memory Man analog delay pedals at his feet.

He would run the huge stompboxes in series, with large foot-operable levers attached to the mix knobs, allowing him to adjust effects levels on the fly.

It was a primitive setup that hogged an immense amount of pedalboard real estate, but it was all part of Timmons’ eternal quest to achieve the ultimate echo sound.

Generating pristine, subtly modulated reflections that ricocheted dreamily behind the notes, the setup made simple electric guitar phrases sound spectacular.

Now you can get Timmons’ treasured echo sound without having to spend hours or days toying with a mountain of old analog delays and tape echoes, as he has been doing his whole life.

Just hit preset 1A on Keeley Electronics’ new Halo pedal, and his go-to echo setting is yours.

For the Timmons fan, having instant access to this sound is a huge score. It’s like an RC Cola engineer suddenly getting the recipe for Coke.

Playing in mono, à la Timmons’ Memory Man setup, the effect is quite inspiring, seducing your ears with hypnotic repeats tastefully chorused via the modulation and depth knobs, and warmed and compressed by the high-pass filter and saturation controls.

The most hypnotic aspect of this patch may be how the ethereal, dovetailing echoes gradually diffuse into a pleasant, reverb-like wash – a “halo,” as Timmons describes it.

Running this patch in stereo through two amplifiers geometrically expands the magic, and the sound is so scrumptious it may make even a die-hard mono player crave a stereo rig.

Interestingly, while the Halo’s delays are truly stereophonic, the signature diffusion sound Timmons loves arises from how the modulated delays, rather than ping-ponging aggressively left and right, subtly drift in time on each side of the mix, all the while leaving the initial guitar signal uneffected.

While Timmons’ halo tone may be this box’s flagship feature, it’s important to note that this compact pedal is – like the Keeley Eccos and Hydra pedals, which share the same layout of knobs, switches and LEDs – a most versatile stompbox. (Robert Keeley says that, thanks to a new circuit board, the Halo noise floor is even lower than that of its sister pedals.)

From slapback echo and rich stereo chorus to ultra-saturated overdriven tape echo-style repeats and standard digital delay sounds (attained by opening the high-pass filter and minimizing saturation), the Halo is primed for many a pro application.

Halo’s handy utilities include infinite repeat, which is engaged by holding down whichever foot switch is inactive along with tap tempo (hold down the active foot switch to enter tap-tempo mode).

The pedal offers five tap-controllable subdivisions, including dotted-eighth, quarter-note and “golden ratio” (quarter-note plus dotted-eighth-note) stacked echoes. The latter subdivision is a key part of the Timmons’ halo sound, and is represented by the circular halo graphic located at the noon position of the rhythm control.

And forget those clumsy foot levers from Timmons’ past – mix levels and any other parameter can be controlled using your favorite expression pedal.

To advance to the Halo’s next preset bank, just flick the toggle switch, or, better yet, step on both foot switches at once. And while I dig all the factory patches that Timmons, Keeley and Keeley DSP engineer Aaron Tackett came up with for the Halo, it’s great that you can write over them to store your own patches.

This means you have eight places to store new sounds — well, realistically, seven, because you’ll never write over that first Andy Timmons patch.

My favorite Halo trait, though, is that it is, in the best possible way, a real productivity interrupter.

When I unboxed it, set it up in stereo and started playing, I lost two hours soaring in those echoes, playing for the pure joy of it, reveling in the illusion each of us hope every new pedal will bring – the feeling that, somehow, the new guitar gizmo at our feet has made us a better player.

Specifications:

• CONTROLS: Feedback (push and hold to engage the other knobs’ alternate functions), time/high pass filter, level/saturation, rate/ tone, depth/rhythm. Foot switches activate either of current bank’s two presets. Toggle switch advances bank.
• EXTRAS: Mono/stereo inputs and outputs. Eight presets. Tap tempo with multiple rhythmic subdivisions. Infinite hold. Trails/ true-bypass switchable. Controllable via expression pedal and/or remote switch
• BUILT: USA

Visit Keeley for more information.

Electro-Harmonix introduced the original Pulsar around 1979, and it was one of the first tremolo pedal effects. Original is the operative word here, because like most EHX devices, it offered a unique take on a classic sound. 

From the beginning, the pedal provided many more sound-shaping possibilities than your classic amp tremolo. There was a switch to toggle between amp-like triangle and synth-style square-wave choppiness, as well as a knob to further shape the character of the unit’s pulsing, volume-sculpted rhythms. 

Over the years, while retaining the same controls, the pedal went from a small housing to a larger one, then returned to a smaller, more robust package with a stereo option that adds panning to the equation. 

The new Nano version is the smallest housing yet, yet it sacrifices no modifiers or stereo functionality. In fact, an additional control has been added. As there is often a perceived level drop when a tremolo effect is engaged, EHX has included a volume control to compensate for this. 

The depth knob is just one area in which this pedal differs from your typical tremolo/panning effect. It has the usual function of adjusting the amount of tremolo, but push it past around one o’clock and the modulation becomes asymmetrical, warping the audio signal between positive and negative phases. To my ears, it then hovers somewhere between a Leslie and a harmonic tremolo. 

The rate knob provides an enormous range of speed adjustment for the tremolo or pan effect. At it slowest, I found it unusable for tremolo, but when set to run very slow on the square wave setting, it made for an interesting panning effect, as the signal spent a long time in one amp before jumping to the other. At high speeds it enters into ring-modulation territory. 

The shape knob gradually shifts from falling to rising sawtooth, and from narrow to wide pulse width. The rate/status LED pulses to show the speed of the effect when it's engaged. The Pulsar runs on an included nine-volt battery or an optional power supply. 

If you’re trying to match the sound of the classic amp tremolo in your Fender or Vox, the Nano Pulsar might not be for you, although I could definitely get a usable vintage-style sound from it. 

Where this pedal came alive was when I stomped on my octave fuzz and ran it through a galloping square-wave rhythm for a terrific analog synth-style sound. There is no tap tempo, so, live, you will have to start the song and have the drummer match the tempo you set on the pedal. Using it to record with a drum loop, I was able to set the rhythm to sync for as long as my guitar chords sustained, which is all you really need.

Thanks to the interaction between the shape, depth, and rate controls, the Pulsar presents an abundance of cool sounds that can’t be achieved with standard amp tremolo. 

With no presets and the aforementioned lack of tap tempo, the Pulsar may find use largely in the studio, but you could easily stumble across a couple of unique sounds that you must have for live performance. In fact, with the Nano Pulsar’s small size and low price, you could strap two of them on your board for less than the cost of some larger boutique pedals.

Specifications

CONTACT: ehx.com
PRICE: $99 street
CONTROLS: Volume, depth, rate, shape, waveform toggle
EXTRAS: Stereo operation
SIZE: 4.5” x 2.75” x 2.1”
BUILT: USA

To us guitar players, the words ‘rams head big muff’ mean something different.

But to J Mascis, they represent something truly special.

Having amassed an impressive collection, the alt-rock legend is regarded as a connoisseur of the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi.

He’s used them in Dinosaur Jr. for years and the thick distortion they yield is as much a part of his signature sound as anything.

Now, the New York effects pedal pioneer has added the J Mascis Ram’s Head Big Muff Pi to their extensive line of Muffs that also includes [deep breath] the Nano Metal Muff, Ram’s Head Big Muff Pi, Sovtek Deluxe Big Muff Pi, Triangle Big Muff Pi, Op Amp Big Muff Pi, Green Russian Big Muff Pi, Nano Bass Big Muff Pi, Deluxe Big Muff Pi, Nano Big Muff Pi, Deluxe Bass Big Muff Pi, Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi, Big Muff Pi with Tone Wicker, Bass Big Muff Pi, Little Big Muff Pi, Metal Muff with Top Boost and – last but not least – the good ol’ Big Muff Pi.

That’s a lot of Muff.

Priced $131.50, EHX says the new stompbox “pays homage to the sonic center of the alt-rock legend’s iconic tone of equal parts thickness and clarity.”

Recalling the first time he came across a Muff, Mascis says, “I got it pretty soon after I got my guitar. On the first Dino album [1985’s Dinosaur] I have it listed as an instrument – like I played guitar and Big Muff.”

Mascis’s first Muff was one of the larger, Howard Davis-designed Deluxe units that appeared in the late ‘70s.

Next, he acquired a ‘ram’s head’ version. Featuring red, purple, blue or black graphics, the name comes from a so-called ram’s head motif positioned in the bottom-right corner. 

Superseding the ‘triangle’ Muffs that debuted in ’69, the ram's head units appeared in ’73 and were around for a few years before EHX settled on the more common red and black graphics.

“All distorted sounds begin with the Muff,” says Mascis. “The Muff is always on.”

Visit Electro-Harmonix for more information.

Electro-Harmonix have just expanded their popular 9 Series effects range with a new pedal designed to emulate orchestral and synthesizer string sounds.

The new STRING9 String Ensemble is the latest stompbox to appear in EHX's pioneering 9 Series that was launched in 2014 with the B9 Organ Machine. This was swiftly followed by the appearance of the C9 Organ Machine.

The next year saw the release of the KEY9 Electric Piano Machine, followed by the MEL9 Tape Replay Machine in 2016, SYNTH9 Synthesizer Machine in 2017, and BASS9 Bass Machine in 2019.

Being an experienced keys player himself, Electro-Harmonix founder Mike Matthews knows only too well the difficulties involved with transporting large, cumbersome instruments (or an orchestral string section for that matter!) So the 4.75-inches-long by 4-inches-wide STRING9 String Ensemble will come as welcome relief for many.

Transforming your guitar pickup signal into a variety of retro-inspired string sounds, the pedal’s nine modes include Symphonic, June-O, PCM, Floppy, Aarp, Crewman, Orch Freeze, Synth Freeze and Vox Freeze.

In addition to the unit’s separate Dry and Effect signal volume knobs, each of the nine modes (referred to as presets and patches in the manual) features two controllable parameters. Depending on the mode, these will be different and are set using the Ctrl 1 and Ctrl 2 knobs.

Symphonic mode is intended to reproduce the sound of orchestral strings, with the lower strings triggering a sub octave. Ctrl 1 acts as a tone control here, while Ctrl 2 adjusts sustain and release (in other words, how long it takes for the sound to fade out.)

The June-O mode recreates those classic Roland Juno synth sounds of the early ‘80s. In this case, Ctrl 1 provides tone control and Ctrl 2 allows the user to choose from any of five octaves.

In synth speak, PCM stands for Pulse Code Modulation (think late ‘80s Roland D-50 and Korg M1) and the STRING9’s PCM mode seeks to provide the sound of a “smaller studio string section” à la vintage digital synths. Here, Ctrl 1 and Ctrl 2 control tone and vibrato, respectively.

Floppy mode approximates the sound of the ‘70s Vako Orchestron units that utilized optical floppy discs to play back pre-recorded samples. Again, Ctrl 1 adjusts tone, while Ctrl 2 determines sustain/release time.

The AARP mode emulates the sounds of the STRING9’s namesake, the ARP/Solina String Ensemble – a polyphonic synth from the ‘70s with a characteristic chorus effect. In this mode, Ctrl 1 toggles a Small Stone sound on/off and adjusts the phaser's rate, while Ctrl 2 controls sustain/release time.

Crewman mode approximates the string sounds of the Italian-made Crumar Performer units produced from the late ‘70s. In this setting, Ctrl 1 adjusts a filter sweep and Ctrl 2 controls sustain/release time.

The last three modes feature Electro-Harmonix’s much-loved Freeze algorithm as featured in the HOG and Superego pedals.

Orch Freeze produces an orchestral-style string sound, while Synth Freeze is more akin to a synthesizer string patch. Vox Freeze blends tape playback Mellotron-style sounds of choir and strings.

In each case, the Freeze function can be set to either automatic or manual using Ctrl 2. 

As Freeze allows notes and chords to be sustained for greater periods of time, it can work really well for recreating string pad sounds.

The beauty of this pedal is that it works just fine using a regular electric guitar, so you don’t need to fit any special pickups or modify the instrument in any way.

Visit Electro-Harmonix for more information.

Introduced in 1978, the Deluxe Memory Man delivered rich, clear electric guitar tones that made it a hit with musicians and set a standard for analog delay that endures to this day.

The Nano DMM is the latest version of this classic, and, along with a compact housing, it now includes a rate control for the modulation and an internal switch located on the foot-switch board for selecting true bypass (the default stock setting) or buffered bypass, which preserves the delay tails when the effect is switched off.

The unit has blend, feedback, delay, level, rate and depth controls, a pair of LEDs for status and overload, a front-mounted jack for the nine-volt DC power input, and side-mounted input and output jacks.

Plugged Fender Deluxe Reverb or Victoria Double Deluxe 2x12 combo amplifiers, the Nano DMM proved itself an excellent delay that sounds lush and crystal clear at settings ranging from slapback echo to long ambient delays.

Even the repeats stay very clear when the feedback knob is turned up to around four o’ clock, where the echoes start drifting into self-oscillation. The noise level is also practically nil at high delay/feedback settings, which is very cool.

The addition of the rate control is a great feature that allows you to adjust the modulation for everything from tape-like wobble to shimmering vibrato.

Delay always sounds better with some modulation, and now you can dial in the speed for exactly the modulation and feel that works best for you. In addition, the level knob lets you set the perfect volume for when the effect is activated.

The Electro-Harmonix Nano Deluxe Memory Man brings a new level of enjoyment to this classic effect, and it’s a must-have for anyone who thrives on the lush, organic vibe of analog echo.

Specifications:

• BUILT USA
• CONTROLS Blend, feedback, delay, level, rate and depth
• FOOT SWITCHES Mechanical, true-bypass (buffered bypass selectable with internal switch)
• POWER SUPPLY 9VDC external power only
• EXTRAS Extra control over modulation via the Rate knob. Handy level control. Internal switch for true bypass or “tails.” 9VDC adapter included

Visit Electro-Harmonix for more information.

Electro-Harmonix has unveiled the latest incarnation of their long-running Q-Tron envelope filter – the Nano Q-Tron. As its name suggests, this diminutive stompbox occupies little in the way of floor space (at least compared to the overly capacious Q-Tron/Q-Tron+ units of the ‘90s and ‘00s.)

Though EHX have been making envelope filters since the ‘70s (including the excellent Doctor Q stompbox) their Q-Tron pedals were developed in the mid-‘90s with assistance from Musitronics co-founder and electronics engineer Mike Beigel. Beigel takes the credit for designing perhaps the most esteemed vintage envelope filter of all – the Musitronics Mu-Tron III – and it is this expertise he took to EHX when originally developing the Q-Tron.

Since then, Q-Trons have appeared in various guises of seemingly ever diminishing size. Which is probably good thing. One of the biggest gripes about the older units is the amount of space they take up on pedalboards, which is a fair comment considering how infrequently most electric guitar players use the effect.

That said, the auto wah sound can be used to literally great effect when applied tastefully. Larry Coryell and Jerry Garcia both favored the Mu-Tron III back in the day, while in more recent years Q-Trons have been spotted at the feet of John Mayer and Flea.

Touted as a compact version of the Micro Q-Tron, the Nano Q-Tron measures just 4.5 x 2.75 x 2.1 inches and is fitted with a simple set of control knobs including Volume, Drive (sensitivity) and Q (peak bandwidth.) The pedal features three Modes or filter types, namely LP (low pass), HP (high pass), and BP (band pass.)

To order your Electro-Harmonix Nano Q-Tron head over to Sweetwater where you can make a saving of $35.10

Electro-Harmonix has unveiled its new 15Watt Howitzer preamp pedal and pedal amp.

Billed by EHX head honcho Mike Matthews as the perfect "compact guitar rig or backup," the 15Watt Howitzer boasts Volume, Gain, Bass, Mid, and Treble controls plus a Bright switch – which allows users to select between "a subtle top boost with more presence or a slightly darker top end" – and a built-in effects loop.

The pedalboard-mountable unit is compact enough to fit into just about any gig bag, and will work with any speaker cabinet rated at 8 or 16 ohms. 

Of the pedal, Matthews says that "It’s super versatile and – depending on what kind of setup you’re running – fits into any style that’s your bag."

The Electro-Harmonix 15Watt Howitzer preamp pedal is available now – with a 4VDC/1.0A power supply included – for $127.80.

For more info on the pedal, stop by ehx.com.

• Our pick of the best guitar amps available today

Not too long after accessories giant Ernie Ball announced that it was throwing its hat into the pedalboard power supply ring with the Volt, Electro-Harmonix has unveiled its first isolated power supply unit, the MOP-D10.

A transformer-based unit, the MOP-D10 is outfitted with 10 isolated 9VDC outputs: 4x100mA, 2x250mA, 2x300mA, and 2x400mA. Its linear regulators and custom-wound toroidal transformer promise low-noise operation.

An AC Voltage Selector Switch allows for use with a range of voltages from around the world, while an on/off switch is also included.

The Electro-Harmonix MOP-D10 pedalboard power supply comes with a 6' detachable power cord and 10 24" long DC power cables – with one straight and one right-angle end – and hardware for pedalboard mounting. It's available now for $269.50.

For more info on the MOP D-10, stop by ehx.com.

Electro-Harmonix has unveiled the Nano Metal Muff distortion pedal, a smaller incarnation of its popular Metal Muff unit.

Sporting a chassis that's about half the size of the original, the Nano Metal Muff packs six controls – Treble, Mid, Bass, Volume, Gate, and Distortion – and true bypass switching.

Though the pedal lacks the original's footswitchable Top Boost, it does feature a newly designed noise gate, for removing unwanted hum during gaps in playing. The noise gate features an adjustable noise floor threshold and a dedicated LED that indicates when the output signal is muted. 

The Electro-Harmonix Nano Metal Muff distortion pedal is available now – with a 9 Volt battery included – for $72.70. The pedal also accepts a standard EHX 9.6DC200mA power supply.

For more info on the pedal, stop by ehx.com.

When I first started working for the U.S. distributor of Marshall amps 38 years ago (man, that was hard to write!), my boss warned me that tube amps weren’t going to be around much longer. He reasoned that very few products that used vacuum tubes were still being manufactured, and there just wasn’t enough business to keep the tube factories going. 

During the Fifties, tubes were used in every consumer electronic product, including radios, TVs, and audio gear, but by 1978 the transition to solid-state was in full force, and tubes were found mainly in some guitar amps and high-end audio components.

During that time, most U.S. and European tube manufacturers either sold or were going to sell their tube-manufacturing operations to Asian or Eastern Bloc companies. Fortunately, the manufacture of tube guitar amps has enjoyed a healthy resurgence over the years, and interest in new amps and maintaining old amps is keeping tube factories operating in Russia, China, and the Slovak Republic.

Although they don’t make tubes quite like they used to, the good news is that multiple brands and versions of just about every tube you will ever need for a guitar amp are currently being manufactured. The not-so-good news is that the quality can vary from month to month and from production run to production run. Many tube merchants test and match their tubes before selling them, but the quality of the testing and matching is not consistent from supplier to supplier. There are too many versions of guitar amp tubes to discuss here, so I’ll focus on the ones I prefer.

12AX7: Since this is the most common tube in guitar amps, a wide variety of brands (including some resurrected old brands) are available to choose from. In Colby and Park amps, I use Tung Sol, Chinese, and JJ 12AX7 tubes, as well as the Sovtek 12AX7LPS. I typically use Tung Sols in the first preamp stage because they have a warm sound. I use JJs in tone driver/cathode follower stages and tube effect loops because they can handle the high cathode voltage. I also like Chinese 12AX7 tubes in the phase inverter because the bright tonal character adds a nice bite. The 12AX7LPS sounds great in the dtb50’s overdrive channel. All of these brands tend to be reliable, although I get bad ones from time to time.

EL34: The Electro-Harmonix EL34 is a good choice that sounds great and is reliable. JJ EL34 tubes are very reliable and sound good too, but be careful to get EL34 tubes and not E34L tubes unless your amp was specifically designed for them. Tung Sols are good but a bit more expensive. Winged Cs are much more expensive, and since they are not being manufactured any longer, most that are still available come from the last production run and are of questionable quality.

EL84: I don’t make amps with EL84 tubes, but I’ve heard good things about JJ EL84s. The standard Sovtek EL84 tubes also earn similar kudos, but recently the price went up significantly.

KT66: I use Gold Lions, which sound very good, put out the right amount of power, and are not expensive.

KT88: The Sovtek KT88 sounds very good and is not expensive. I’ve had a couple of failures, but the tone makes up for it. The JJs are very reliable, a little more expensive, and sound pretty good.

6550: I don’t use them in my amps, but Ruby 6550 tubes are highly recommended by techs I know and trust, especially for use in amps like Ampeg SVTs that put considerable high-voltage strain on the tubes.

6L6: TAD offers a few varieties, and I have had good success with all of them. I like their RCA clones, such as the 6L6GC-STR and 6L6WGC-STR, which is about the size of a vintage 5881. Ruby Tubes makes some nice 6L6s as well. All of these are Chinese tubes that were designed with the help of Ruby and TAD. The Groove Tubes GE 6L6 clone is a unique design that sounds great and reminds me of the vintage Sylvania 6L6GCs, but they aren’t particularly reliable. The Sovtek 5881 isn’t really a 5881 or a 6L6, but it’s still a great tube in its own right. It sounds good in many 6L6-based amps and is just about impossible to kill.

6V6: I like Ruby 6V6s. JJ 6V6 tubes are very reliable but don’t sound like 6V6s to me.

5Y3: JJ’s 5Y3 rectifiers are good, but they can rattle in a combo. The Sovteks rattle, and they put out too much voltage. Instead, I recommend buying NOS or even used USA 5Y3s. They were made in huge quantities, so they’re still available and not expensive.

5AR4/GZ34: I use either Sovtek or Ruby, which are both reliable.

Mitch Colby helped develop many Marshall and Vox amp designs and is the founder of Colby Amplification.

Electro-Harmonix has pulled back the curtain on its new bit crusher pedal, the Mainframe.

Designed to recreate the lo-fi sounds of old arcade games, consoles and terminals, the Mainframe is equipped with bit depth reduction ranging from 24-bit to 1-bit, and sample rate reduction ranging from 48kHz to 110Hz.

The pedal's selectable High/Low/Band-Pass filter allows users to shape the artifacts of the bit crushing and sample rate reduction, while the Sample Rate Tuning Mode allows users to set the sample rate to match the key of a song, or to continually adjust the sample rate based on how they play.

The Mainframe's programmable preset and expression pedal settings allow users to save their sound or control any combination of the pedal's knobs with an external expression pedal.

Tones can also be tweaked via the pedal's secondary controls, which include filter strength, input gain and styles of sample rate and bit depth reduction.

The Electro-Harmonix Mainframe bit-crusher pedal is available now - with a standard EHX 9.6DC200mA power supply - for $179.

For more info on the pedal, point your browser over to ehx.com.

Electro-Harmonix has announced the release of its new Pitch Fork+ polyphonic pitch-shifter/harmony pedal. 

The pedal is headlined by two independent pitch-shifting engines - both of which are capable of transposing over a +/- 3 octave range as well as detuning +/-99 cents.

Each shifted voice, and the dry signal, features its own volume control. These can then be routed in a number of different ways, thanks to the pedal's main and aux outputs.

The pedal's User footswitch features a dedicated LED, allows users to save and cycle up to 100 presets, and can assigned to mute a shift voice, jump to a preset program, crossfade modes, or a number of other functions.

On the whole, the pedal features eight modes - among them X-Mod, which creates FM and ring mod- style effects. The pedal's Momentary mode has also been enhanced.

The Pitch Fork+'s external input can be used with foot controllers to scroll through presets, while its expression input allows for expression or CV control over parameters in the pedal's frequency, glissando and volume sub-menus.

The Electro-Harmonix Pitch Fork+ polyphonic pitch-shifter/harmony pedal is available now - with a standard EHX 9.6DC200mA power supply - for $213.80.

For more info on the pedal, stop on by ehx.com.

Electro-Harmonix has debuted its new 1440 Stereo looper pedal.

Named after the amount of uncompressed stereo recording time it possesses (1440 seconds, or 24 minutes), the 1440 Stereo Looper features storage for up to 20 loops and unlimited overdubs. 

The pedal is anchored by two footswitches, stop/FX and loop, the latter of which users can hold to undo/redo. The loop switch can be set up to stop the loop on a double-tap, while an external footswitch can also be connected to select loops and for undo/redo.

Other features include a one-shot button option to play back a loop a single time, adjustable loop fadeout time, loop synchronization to an external MIDI clock and USB connection to import and export loops via EHX's 1440 PC/Mac app.

The 1440 Stereo Looper also packs reverse and octave effects, and it can be set up to rec/play/dub or rec/dub/play.

The Electro-Harmonix 1440 Stereo Looper pedal is available now - with a 9V power supply included - for $221.30.

For more info on the pedal, point your browser on over to ehx.com.

Electro-Harmonix has debuted its new Cntl Knob static expression pedal.

The New York company's first-ever mini-pedal, the Cntl Knob lets a player set two preset values - representing two positions of a traditional expression pedal - on any pedal with an expression output jack, and toggle between them with its footswitch.

The pedal's EXP 1 Knob selects the first expression setting, while the EXP 2 Knob chooses the second. Fully counter-clockwise is the heel position, while fully clockwise represents the toe-down position.

Elsewhere, there's a TRS+/- button to match the Cntl Knob’s expression polarity to your pedals, plus LEDs that indicate which knob is active.

The Electro-Harmonix Cntl Knob static expression pedal runs from a standard 9V power supply, and is available now - with a six-foot TRS cable - for a mere $39.

For more info on the pedal, stop by ehx.com.